Anthony Brandt
Professor
Rice University
About Me
I’m a Professor of Composition at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music. My catalogue includes four chamber operas, as well as orchestral, chamber, vocal, theater, dance, and television scores. Recent honors include MacDowell (2023) and Copland House (2024) fellowships. I recently composed the music for the ballets “LiveWire” and “Meeting of Minds” and chamber work “Diabelli 200,” collaborations in which several of the performers wear mobile brain-body imaging, with live visualizations of the data. “Meeting of Minds” was performed at the United Nation’s “AI for Good Summit” in Geneva and awarded Chamber Music America’s 2025 Interdisciplinary Collaboration of the Year Award.
I’m also co-founder and Artistic Director of the Houston-based contemporary music ensemble Musiqa, two-time winners of Adventurous Programming Awards from Chamber Music America and ASCAP (2013 and '16). Musiqa has presented the music of nearly 300 living composers, including close to 100 world premieres.
Hear My Insights
Tuning Into the Future: How is AI Reshaping the Music Industry
We’re just realizing the scope of possibilities opened by AI tools in the creative field. Questions around copyright, revenue, and the saturation of streaming platforms by AI-generated content are emerging. How can we safeguard the rights of artists against AI-generated content? How can we differentiate “deepfake” music from AI-supported original content? What ethical frameworks should be put in place in the creative fields? New technologies have always disrupted the music world, what lessons can be extracted from history?